Chances
by oldmoviewatcher
Summary: Jack Sloane has secrets that may be hidden in plain sight.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi NCIS fandom, it's been a while!**

 **Enjoy!**

At twenty- three, a young Leroy Jethro Gibbs sits with his fiancee on the couch watching the news.

"It's awful," The red head beside him murmurs.

"What?" Gibbs asks zoning out.

"This stuff in the Middle East! How could someone kill so many people?"

Gibbs swallows remembering what he needs to talk about. Lowering the volume on the TV, Gibbs states, "Shannon, I need to tell you something."

Worried, Shannon gives her fiancee her full attention.

"I reupped," He begins. "My CO wants me to go overseas."

"Wants you or orders you?" Shannon asks evenly not even wanting to address the man's reenlisting.

"Orders," Gibbs answers. "I leave in three months."

Angry, Shannon starts crying how unfair the situation is.

"I know, but they need me."

"To what? Kill more people?"

"Shannon," Gibbs begins.

"Don't 'Shannon' me, Leroy Jethro Gibbs! You can't just leave again! We were supposed to have over a year before you left again."

"Yeah, well the Marine Corp has other plans."

"But you could die," Shannon states standing up and pacing. Gibbs watches as his fiancee rants about his stories from Basic and the stories on the news.

"Look at your friend who died!" The red head points out trying to find a way to keep him in the States.

"That's what I signed up for," Gibbs remarks. The glare in Shannon's eyes tells him he says the wrong thing.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do this anymore," Shannon states leaving the apartment.

"Shannon!" Gibbs calls out as he begins to follow her out the door where she tells him to leave her alone. He waits an hour for her to come back before picking up his car keys. Driving near a bar down the street from his apartment, Leroy Jethro Gibbs decides to drink his cares away. Oblivious to all other people around him, Gibbs drinks for about an hour until he is pretty sure he is numb.

"This seat taken?" A blonde asks as Gibbs stares blankly at his glass. No matter how many drinks he has, he cannot stop thinking about Shannon. He mumbles a no, and watches the woman slide onto the bar stool beside him.

"Girlfriend leave you?" The woman asks. Gibbs shakes his head, "Fiancee."

The blonde simply nods knowing her observational skills are getting better despite what her chauvinistic professor tells her.

"That's rough," She states.

"Yep," Gibbs answers as he drinks the last of the bourbon in his glass. Restarting the conversation, the blonde introduces herself.

"Jackie."

Deciding there is no harm in giving his name, Gibbs replies, "Jethro."

Jackie's eyebrows shoot up suspecting the name is fake. Spying a dart board in the corner of the bar, Jackie asks the bartender for the darts.

"Best two out of three at darts, and the loser has to buy the next round," Jackie states bored by their conversation. Having nothing better to do, Gibbs agrees.

Turning the darts game into a drinking game after the first round, the two find themselves playing until Last Call. Remembering she has no ride, Jackie digs in her pockets for change to call for a cab.

"I got my car outside. Let me drive you home," Gibbs offers. Playing with one of the darts in her hand, the blonde agrees. She gets in the man's car and gives him the directions back to her apartment. When he parks, she smiles.

"Thanks," She says before kissing him on what she realizes quickly is not his cheek. Shocked that Gibbs turns his head just as she goes to kiss him, she is equally shocked when he kisses her back. With all lack of caution, the pair find themselves in her apartment ten minutes later. The next morning, Jackie wakes up with a pounding headache and a man in her bed. Looking at the clock on her bedside table, the blonde suddenly remembers she has an exam and quickly leaves the man she can barely recall the name of asleep in her bed with a note to lock up once he's up.

The slam of a door wakes Gibbs up from his sleep. Aware that he is not in his apartment, Gibbs grabs his clothes, changes, and heads home. Entering his apartment, Gibbs recalls Shannon walking out the door. Scrubbing his face with his hand, Gibbs picks up his phone and dials Shannon's number. No answer. After an hour of torturing himself over his decisions, he hears a knock on his door. Opening his door, Gibbs finds Shannon standing in front of him.

"I'm sorry," She states. Gibbs lets his finacee inside the apartment as they decide to work through any problems they may have. A month later, the couple decides to elope and spends their wedding day walking through the park before going up to Stillwater to see their families. As they walk through the park, Gibbs does a double take when he sees a blonde walk by. He makes contact with her, each trying to figure out how they know each other. The blonde shakes her head she hears the red head tease, "Old girlfriend?"

Almost immediately, the blonde realizes who the man is, but decides greeting a one night stand is a terrible idea. Then, she remembers what is in the bag in her hand and quickly heads toward her apartment. Usually the short walk from her apartment to the pharmacy is calming. However, her mind is not clear until she takes the pregnancy test out of the box once she is in her apartment bathroom.

Crumbling to the ground, Jackie nearly hyperventilates when the test is positive. Knowing she cannot provide a good home for her future child, Jackie decides that giving the child up is the best possible solution.

Eight months later, Jackie lets the nurses take her newborn daughter, knowing she'll never see her again. Before she leaves, the nurse asks, "Did you have a name for her?"

Smiling, Jackie answers, "Ellie."

 **Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, so tonight's episode finally gave me a launch point. Thank you to anyone who still wants to keep reading! Also, I so called this adoption arc a year ago! Who's been reading fanfiction NCIS writers? I kid. Mostly.**

 **Enjoy!**

After thirty five years away, Jack Sloane finds herself back in D.C. in the middle of a storm. Fitting after the last few months of torture and PTSD sessions. Hearing Vance mention a familiar name over the phone before she comes into the city, Sloane immediately looks him up. Standing in the rain outside his house, Sloane starts second guessing herself, but then the door opens. Part of her finds humor in the fact that Leroy Jethro Gibbs does not remember her, but decides to focus on the case Gibbs is given. By the next morning she cements herself into the life of the NCIS office. Learning about all of the agents becomes a full time job for her, and Sloane relishes the chance to read people again. Seeing Gibbs as she goes back to her office, Sloane notices McGee and decides to formally introduce herself. Getting around to Nick, then Bishop who comes up recently from the lab.

"Bishop, this is Sloane," Gibbs introduces. Ellie holds out her hand and greets her.

"Eleanor Bishop," The younger woman begins. "But, everyone calls me Ellie."

Hearing the nickname she is so fond of, Sloane tries not to let her emotion show. Instead, she finds a viable excuse to leave and quickly goes to her new office. Closing the door, the analyst tells herself that Ellie's name is merely a nickname. To occupy her mind, Sloane picks up a file from the top of her stack to read over the lives of other NCIS agents. Taking a break from the files once words start to run together, Sloane sits back in her chair. Finally deciding to look into Gibbs' team, Sloane starts with the senior team member first. Finally she gets to the last file.

"Eleanor Bishop," She says to herself unwilling to say the woman's nickname. In no way will she entertain the idea that the blonde agent is her daughter. However, once she scans the first page of the file, she is immediately surprised by the agent's birth date. Taking a deep breath, Sloane continues to read the file absorbing all its information thankful that her supposed daughter has a good home. Unable to focus on any other agent, Sloane closes the file on her desk ends up stalking Ellie's social media. As the weeks progress, Sloane obsesses over Bishop's personnel file and even begins to question each member of team Gibbs under the guise of research.

Realizing she is being obsessive as she goes over Ellie's facial expressions and mannerisms one afternoon, Sloane closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Finding solace in her office, Sloane grabs the darts that sit in a cup on her desk knowing the game will calm her down. As she throws dart after dart against the board on her office wall, Sloane barely registers the knock on her office door until an agent walks in and clears his throat. She turns to find Gibbs staring at her with an authoritative look. Dropping her last two darts in the basket on her desk, the analyst asks, "Can I help you, Agent Gibbs?"

"It's about my team. I need you to stop profiling them."

"Profiling?" Sloane questions. Gibbs nods adding, "A few of them think you are here as a shrink."

Sloane laughs at the notion explaining, "No, I just like to do my research. Like you were a Marine before you worked here. Nick was undercover, Ellie worked with the NSA."

"You could have just read our files," Gibbs replies. Sloane merely nods not wanting to explain that his team's files are the only ones she looks at the closest. Studying the analyst, Gibbs asks, "Sloane? You okay?"

"Yeah, yes," Sloane stammers before quickly composing herself adding, "Stop researching your team. Got it."

She breathes a sigh of relief when he gets a cell phone call from one of his team.

Sitting back at her desk, Sloane picks up Ellie's file again.

As the months pass, Sloane remotely keeps tabs on her daughter and becomes closer to Gibbs. At least, until the John Ross and Sweeney case drives her over the edge. After telling Ross her backstory and the fact that she is a POW and carries the guilt of not saving her crew, she is equally upset when she finds out he has a daughter that he never met. Watching Ross talk to his daughter on the street outside the post office, Jack feels jealous. She knows exactly where her daughter is, but cannot get the courage to approach her. Noticing John get back in the car, she asks with forced cheer, "How did it go?"

"Great! She wants to meet with on her day off next week."

"Well, that's exciting," Jack replies as she starts the engine. Driving back to Ross' house, the blonde listens politely at the man's rambling before leaving him at his home. Turning on to the main road five minutes later, Jack drives to a familiar house. Parking outside, she debates entering the home knowing she is not invited. Deciding she needs a friend, Sloane turns of the ignition and steps out of the car and up to Gibbs' front door.

Walking inside, the blonde easily takes the stairs to the basement.

"You really need to get a lock on the front door," Jack admonishes before making her way to the bourbon. Pouring a glass, the blonde sits on one of the chairs.

"Ross got to meet his daughter tonight," Jack states as she sips her drink.

"Yeah?" Gibbs asks not looking up from his woodwork. Instead he waits for her to speak. Even a therapist needs a therapist sometimes. After a moment, Jack asks, "Is it wrong to feel jealous?"

"Of Ross?" Gibbs asks.

"That he got to meet his daughter, and I don't."

"What's holding you back?" He asks not knowing until now that she even has a daughter. Jack sighs before answering, "I don't want to ruin her life. She doesn't even know she's adopted."

Turning away from his work, Gibbs asks how she knows.

"I've been keeping tabs on her since I started working here," The blonde reluctantly admits. Neither talks for a while until Gibbs asks, "Do I know her?"

Startled from her thoughts, Jack asks Gibbs to repeat himself.

"Do I know her?" He reiterates. "I figure she works in the building."

Deciding not to lie, Jack nods.

"You know her."

Pouring herself another glass, the analyst asks, "You know she's the reason I was loyal to my team? I mean, I don't regret my decision to give her up. I wasn't ready to be a parent at twenty."

Jack scoffs at her own comment adding, "I couldn't be a parent now. It's just, that team was mine. I had this protectiveness over them, and then I messed it up."

Gibbs watches as Jack takes another swig of his bourbon and soon realizes his almost full bottle is now half empty.

"Jack, how much have you had?" Gibbs asks. She shrugs.

"Two? Three?" She wonders aloud. "I used to be a fun drunk. One time I got a guy to play darts with me in a bar. That was fun."

With her rambling, Gibbs guides a now drunk Jack Sloane upstairs to the living room. Placing her in front of the couch, he watches her sit down.

"Stay," He orders before grabbing water from the fridge and a trash can. Jack sends Gibbs a confused glance in regard to the trash can.

"You'll need it," Gibbs states before heading toward the stairs.

Somehow her coming to his house becomes a regular occurrence after that night. One night, Sloane watches Gibbs a moment as he works on his boat.

"You gonna stand there all night, Jack?" He asks not looking up from his sanding. Descending the stairs, Jack makes her way to the stools.

"Which seat is taken?" She asks causing Gibbs to stop his work. His mind flashes back to a fuzzy memory of a bar, but he shakes his head. Instead, he replies, "Neither."

Jack nods before sitting down and pouring herself a drink.

 **Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Enjoy!**

Throwing darts in her office, Sloane barely registers the door open. Ending her game, the analyst puts the remaining darts in the cup on her desk.

"Gibbs! What can I do for you?" She asks. Noticing Gibbs' stare, Sloane calls her friend's name again. Shaking his head, Gibbs smirks, "You know, sometimes I think I knew you from somewhere."

She merely laughs uneasily and takes the darts off the board to keep from looking at the man.

"You okay, Jack?" Gibbs asks as he watches the woman's shifty glances.

"Yeah," She lies. "What did you need?"

Laying a file down on her desk, he answers, "Need you to profile a suspect."

Nodding, Jack tells him she will before giving a curt goodbye. Concerned by the woman's demeanor, Gibbs asks if she is okay. Swallowing, Jack tells him she is.

"You can go," She says as she comes to the realization that she has to tell Gibbs about their daughter. Nodding, the agent walks to the door and turns instantly when he hears Sloane state, "I slept with you."

"What?" Gibbs questions wondering where the sudden declaration comes from. With a sigh, Sloane admits, "Thirty five years ago, we slept together. That's why you remember me."

Noticing his still confused expression, the blonde elaborates.

"I was in college and you were getting over a break up. Then, I—"

Quickly, Sloane stops herself.

"Then you what?" Gibbs questions easing his hand off the door knob. Sloane shakes her head mumbling, "I don't need to tell you about her."

"Her who?"

Motioning to a seat, Sloane prompts Gibbs to sit down. After a moment, the analyst rambles, "I didn't want to tell you. Well, I did, but you were with someone else when I found out."

"Sloane," Gibbs states to get her back on track. Finally she admits, "I have a daughter."

"Yeah," He remarks remembering her drunken ramblings. Pursing her lips, Sloane explains, "Gibbs, we have a daughter."

"A daughter?" He questions. Sloane nods. Shaking his head, Gibbs replies, "I'm gonna have a hard time believing that."

"It's true."

She notices his disbelief answering with determination, "You do."

"Where is she?" Gibbs challenges. Swallowing, Sloane tells him, "I put her up for adoption. I was in college, and in no place to take care of her. I wanted to call her Ellie. As a nickname. I guess the nurse said something."

She smirks at the thought before smiling. Against her better judgement, Sloane states, "I found her."

"Yeah," Gibbs answers wondering if she even remembers speaking with him a couple months ago. "She works here."

"With you," Sloane nearly whispers. Realization dawns on him as he chokes out, "Ellie?"

She nods, but does not expect the outburst that follows.

"Sloane, what are you trying to pull here?" Gibbs seethes as fuzzy memories of an unknown room invade his head. Evenly, Sloane explains, "Gibbs, you have a daughter."

"Yeah," He answers nonchalantly. Shaking her head, the analyst explains, "Other than Kelly."

"According to you, yeah," Gibbs remarks. Staring at the ceiling, Jack tries to keep her emotions in check. Sighing, Sloane realizes that she cannot even speak. Instead, she looks back at Gibbs and nods her head. Fed up with the conversation, Gibbs stands up.

"I've got a case," He states before leaving the office. To his dismay, the case involves him taking care of a girl only a year older than Kelly.

"I'm sure it must be hard having another little girl back in here, huh?'" Sloane asks as she stands next to Gibbs in his guest room that night. "'You must still have some good memories, though, Gibbs."

He gives her a pensive stare and she quickly changes topics.

Not until six months later does the pair start to become friends again. A month before Christmas the next year, they decide to start dating. A fact they want to keep from the rest of the team. Set to go skiing in Vermont to take some time off, and knowing she and Gibbs are similar in needing alone time, Sloane books a flight out as soon as she can. However, once she finds out that Ellie and Nick are taking care of the stolen baby found at a crime scene, the woman immediately decides to change her plans. Calling Gibbs from her Uber, Sloane makes her way to her boyfriend's house. She is greeted with a kiss as she steps into Gibbs' house.

"How are they?" Sloane whispers once the door is shut. Shrugging, Gibbs nods to his agents asleep on the couch. Smirking, she asks if the baby keeps them up all night.

"Yeah, but I decided to feed the kid at four this morning," The man answers. Nudging him lightly, the psychologist teases, "Softie."

Gibbs simply rolls his eyes before making coffee. Left with two sleeping agents and a baby, Sloane seriously contemplates if this will be her future. Honorary, yet biological grandma to Ellie's own child one day. Looking down at the baby, Sloane notices he is awake. Taking him from the cradle she knows belonged to Kelly, Sloane rocks and sings to the baby. Halfway through a chorus of Jingle Bells, the analyst notices Nick wake up. Once Ellie wakes up and takes over with the baby, Sloane takes the mug of coffee Gibbs offers and watches Ellie take care of the baby. Once they are all called into the office that morning to finish their case, Sloane decides to keep watch over the baby whose carrier sits on McGee's desk. Finally after days of searching, the team finds the baby's mother and Sloane is the one to convince her to give the baby up for adoption. As they leave the seventeen year old, Gibbs looks over at Sloane and asks, "You okay?"

"Yeah," She answers knowing she is lucky to get to see Ellie everyday. That night, Gibbs and Sloane take the front of the SUV while Nick and Ellie sit with the baby in the back.

"Kind of like a family outing," Nick jokes trying to keep himself from showing how upset he is about giving the little guy to his parents. When they arrive to meet the social worker, Gibbs and Sloane ask Nick and Ellie to stay in the car with the baby. Watching the interaction from inside the vehicle, Ellie keeps her hand on the baby to quiet him and comments, "You know Gibbs and Sloane make a nice couple."

Nick merely nods as he dangles his keys in front of the baby to amuse him. After a moment, Nick looks at Ellie's sad expression and squeezes his partner's hand. Before he can say anything, the pair gets out of the vehicle with the baby. Gibbs and Sloane watch the pair walk up to the adoptive parents' house with satisfied expressions.

"They were really good with him," Sloane notes.

"Yep," Gibbs replies. A second later, the analyst remarks how well Ellie and Nick look together. Rolling his eyes, Gibbs jokes, "You sound like her mom."

Just then, Nick and Ellie come back toward them and notice Jack and Gibbs snuggled together.

"You think they're a thing?" Nick asks. Shrugging, Ellie states, "If they are do you think they'd tell us?"

 **Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Enjoy!**

After Christmas, Gibbs asks Sloane sit on the couch in his living room watch an old Western that comes on TV. Gibbs looks at his girlfriend for a moment until she looks up at him.

"What?" She asks. Knowing the topic will be hard, Gibbs finally asks if he can have a DNA test done between him and Ellie.

"You didn't ask for this a year ago?" She asks a little hurt sitting up and pulling away from her boyfriend. Quickly, Gibbs counters, "Did you do one?"

Shocked, Jack closes her mouth. After a moment she asks, "Do you think I should?"

"Yeah," Gibbs replies. Smirking, Sloane asks, "I thought you said to trust your gut? My gut tells me she's my daughter."

"Yeah, Jack, but I need answers."

Nodding, the analyst tells him to do the test.

A few days later, Sloane offers to take the samples down to the lab and asks for the results and a simple DNA match. After a moment, Sloane adds, "Could you do a third sample as well? I can get it to you in a couple hours."

"Sure. How quick do you need them?" Kasie asks her. Shrugging, Sloane answers, "Whenever you get to it. Just keep it to yourself, okay?"

Confused, Kasie agrees anyway. Sloane gives her a small smile before heading upstairs. When she enters her office, she finds Gibbs waiting for her. A look of surprise on her face, Sloane questions what he is doing there.

"Seeing if you took those tests down," Gibbs states. Nodding, Sloane answers that she does before sitting next to her boyfriend. Leaning into him, Sloane admits, "I had her take mine, too."

"Good," Gibbs states. They sit together a minute longer until Gibbs tells her he has to leave. Standing with him, Sloane tells him she will get the results to him soon. As promised, the day she receives the test results, Sloane meets with Gibbs in her office and hands him the results. Putting his glasses on, Gibbs stares at the papers in his hands. Trying to understand them, he asks Jack for clarification. Looking over the papers with him, Jack explains, "This is Ellie's DNA here, and then this is yours and mine. According to the results, we're her parents."

Placing the file down, Gibbs takes off his glasses, but says nothing. He is too shocked. Instead, he compartmentalizes, thanks Jack, and leaves her office. Almost to his desk, he overhears his agents talking about lunch.

"Yeah, I heard there's a great food truck nearby'," Nick comments. "Anyone want anything?"

"Me!" Ellie answers before rattling off an order before quickly retracting her statement. "I just remembered rent is due."

"I can get it for you, B," Nick offers. Shaking her head, Ellie points out, "You got me those chips. I don't want to owe you."

"No worries," He states before turning to McGee. "Two orders down, one to do. What do you want McGee?"

Shaking his head as well, McGee states, "With this shutdown, Delilah and I are trying not to spend too much."

"Stupid shutdown," Nick grumbles before announcing he is off to the food truck. Just as the man leaves, Gibbs walks in. Knowing there is no reason to be there right now except to look busy, Gibbs tells his team to go home.

"You sure, Boss?" McGee asks from his seat at his desk. Nodding, Gibbs keeps his focus on McGee, not wanting to stare directly at Ellie. Try as he might, he may not be able to treat her the same.

"Go. Spend time with your family."

Detecting a sympathetic change to Gibbs' tone, McGee readily agrees before grabbing his things and leaving. Ellie does the same. Left alone, Gibbs sits down at his desk and closes his eyes. Images of Kelly run through his mind, and then he starts wondering what a young Ellie is like. He gets a glimpse when he goes after her in Oklahoma after Jake leaves, but wants to know more. Of all people, of course he is sentimental over his daughters.

Left with the results, Jack stays in her office staring at the papers. Part of her wonders what to think about Gibbs knowing for sure. She wants to ask him, but knows the knowledge is too real. Instead, she goes to her window which looks out over the Navy Yard. A smile crosses her face as she spots Ellie and Nick walking and eating. Despite Ellie dating Boyd, a huge part of her wants them to break up. Watching the agents together, she knows her daughter can do much better. Turning away from the window, Jack has the thought that she and Gibbs may be able to get through this.

 **Review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Enjoy!**

Over the next few weeks, Gibbs manages to have Ellie with him on a sub, but then when Ziva comes back, he loses sight of his biological daughter's whereabouts in order to hide evidence of his surrogate daughter's. He is blind to Ellie's rogue mission for a while until she yells at him for never talking about Ziva. Livid, he exclaims that what he sees when he looks at the desk is _not_ Ziva. His outburst only makes Ellie fight harder for her predecessor.

When the case is over, Gibbs takes a step back proud at how Ellie is willing to stand up for herself. He also happy to know that both she and Ziva are okay. Ellie nearly drowns, and if Nick had not run to her, he would have. Telling so to Jack that night, Gibbs watches a smile creep to her face.

"You would've done it for any of them," She tells him though secretly amused by how much he acts like a dad to not only Ellie, but all his female agents. Her boyfriend merely gives a noncommittal hum before asking if she wants a beer.

A few weeks later, the blonde shares a beer with Nick as they both talk about their partners.

"You know Ellie would be annoyed we were drinking her favorite beer without her. She didn't even want to be on that ship, you know?"

Sloane nods answering, "I don't blame her. Do you know if it's the water she doesn't like? Or–"

Shaking his head, Nick answers, "No, I think it's being trapped under the water. I almost offered to take her place, but knew it wouldn't do any good."

Sloane watches the younger man take a drink before asking how he is. Shrugging, "I'll be fine as long as they come back safe."

"I hear ya," Sloane admits as she raises her bottle to him.

The next day puts a damper on everyone's mood when they find out the submarine has gone rogue, and there is no shortage of hugs when the two come back.

Hugging Ellie first and then Gibbs, Sloane whispers in his ear, "Welcome home, Cowboy."

"Glad to be home," Gibbs answers before giving a smile to Ellie. She smiles back just as Sloane hugs her again. Confused by the second hug, Ellie looks at Gibbs for information, but her boss simply shrugs.

The day after Ellie and Gibbs are back, Nick goes to the gym and tells his trainer various degrees of the last case.

"It was awful, Man," Nick remarks between jabs, "She doesn't even like subs."

His trainer simply laughs as Nick continues his story adding, "She's really coming along with the whole water thing though. I mean, she's not scared of water itself, just being submerged."

For the next couple weeks, Nick's trainer listens to the man talk about Ellie and finally comments, "You really like her, don't you, Nick?"

The trainer merely laughs when the agent get's flustered and a little defensive. After his session, Nick leaves the gym and wakes up in a derelict coat guard ship only to make his way outside to find Gibbs talking to him from the upper deck. Left at the Navy Yard, Nick simply watches everyone around him solve his case. He is only too happy to go home that night and try remember what happened.

On the opposite end of town, Gibbs and Sloane settle into a relaxing night on Gibbs' couch drinking a couple beers.

"Nick talks about Ellie at the gym," Gibbs tells Sloane as the fire burns in his fireplace. Smiling, Sloane asks, "He does? I wonder what he says."

"That she's 'coming along' whatever that means," Gibbs replies as he drinks his beer. A thoughtful expression crosses Sloane's face as she tries to figure out what the words mean.

"You should have seen her face."

"Yeah?" Sloane asks wondering what it looked like. She turns to her boyfriend as he explains that she seemed confused and a little uncertain.

"Well yeah," Sloane answers, "What would 'coming along' even mean? That she's close to him asking her out?"

"Hey," Gibbs starts not wanting a repeat of Tony and Ziva.

"Calm down, Cowboy," Sloane teases as she snuggles up to Gibbs. "It may not mean anything."

"It better not," Gibbs mumbles causing Sloane to chuckle. Thankfully, Gibbs has nothing to worry about when Nick is affronted by what he presumes is Ellie's distrust of him. Telling so to Jack in her evaluation session with him, Nick can see the woman smirk.

"That's exactly something Ellie would do," The agent remarks wondering how much he likes Ellie if he can catch glimpses of her in the psychologist. Locking the bit of information away, Sloane looks back at Nick and asks, "Are you going to do anything about it?"

"What is there to do? She doesn't trust me like I thought."

"Are you sure? Talk to her. Maybe over dinner?"

"I'm not going to dinner with her."

"Okay, well somewhere. Just talk with her. The sooner the better if it will affect your work."

"You've been spending too much time with Gibbs," Nick jokes uneasily knowing in the back of his mind Sloane is right. Leaving his session twenty minutes later, Nick is surprised when he comes down the stairs to see Ellie is still at her desk.

"Hey," She says softly when he comes near her.

"Hey," Nick answers. They are silent a moment until Nick asks, "Do you want to get dinner? We need to talk."

Smiling at him, Ellie answers, "Yeah."

As they eat that night, Nick laughs as he tells Ellie, "I can't believe you called me thirteen times!"

"Well, I really hate paperwork. That, and I really wanted to talk to you alone."

"Confessing your love for me," Nick teases as Ellie rolls her eyes. The serious gaze she gives him next scares him a little. He swallows as Ellie opens her mouth to speak. When nothing comes out, he asks, "B, what's wrong?"

"First, I want to tell you, I trust you, and that is one reason I second guessed you today."

"What's the other reason?" Nick asks confused. Swallowing, Ellie states, "I was let down. A lot."

Nodding, Nick answers, "With Jake."

"And my parents. Um, the other night, I talked with my parents, and it came up that I'm adopted," Ellie states softly. Exhaling a breath he did not know he was holding, Nick remarks, "Woah."

"Yeah, woah," Ellie states. The pair is quiet the rest of dinner. Leaving, Nick puts his arm around Ellie as she complains, "I wish they'd told me! I mean, my brothers joked sometimes, but they were always teasing me."

"Hey," Nick soothes, "It's gonna be okay."

"Yeah, but who am I? I'm not a Bishop anymore," She laments.

"Yeah, you are. Blood doesn't always make a family, B," Nick reassures her just as they reach their cars. As if out of reflex, Nick kisses Ellie on the forehead.

"It'll be okay," He tells her.

Over the next few weeks, Gibbs manages to have Ellie with him on a sub, but then when Ziva comes back, he loses sight of his biological daughter's whereabouts in order to hide evidence of his surrogate daughter's. He is blind to Ellie's rogue mission for a while until she yells at him for never talking about Ziva. Livid, he exclaims that what he sees when he looks at the desk is not Ziva. His outburst only makes Ellie fight harder for her predecessor.

When the case is over, Gibbs takes a step back proud at how Ellie is willing to stand up for herself. He also happy to know that both she and Ziva are okay. Ellie nearly drowns, and if Nick had not run to her, he would have. Telling so to Jack that night, Gibbs watches a smile creep to her face.

"You would've done it for any of them," She tells him though secretly amused by how much he acts like a dad to not only Ellie, but all his female agents. Her boyfriend merely gives a noncommittal hum before asking if she wants a beer.

A few weeks later, the blonde shares a beer with Nick as they both talk about their partners.

"You know Ellie would be annoyed we were drinking her favorite beer without her. She didn't even want to be on that ship, you know?"

Sloane nods answering, "I don't blame her. Do you know if it's the water she doesn't like? Or–"

Shaking his head, Nick answers, "No, I think it's being trapped under the water. I almost offered to take her place, but knew it wouldn't do any good."

Sloane watches the younger man take a drink before asking how he is. Shrugging, "I'll be fine as long as they come back safe."

"I hear ya," Sloane admits as she raises her bottle to him.

The next day puts a damper on everyone's mood when they find out the submarine has gone rogue, and there is no shortage of hugs when the two come back.

Hugging Ellie first and then Gibbs, Sloane whispers in his ear, "Welcome home, Cowboy."

"Glad to be home," Gibbs answers before giving a smile to Ellie. She smiles back just as Sloane hugs her again. Confused by the second hug, Ellie looks at Gibbs for information, but her boss simply shrugs.

The day after Ellie and Gibbs are back, Nick goes to the gym and tells his trainer various degrees of the last case.

"It was awful, Man," Nick remarks between jabs, "She doesn't even like subs."

His trainer simply laughs as Nick continues his story adding, "She's really coming along with the whole water thing though. I mean, she's not scared of water itself, just being submerged."

For the next couple weeks, Nick's trainer listens to the man talk about Ellie and finally comments, "You really like her, don't you, Nick?"

The trainer merely laughs when the agent get's flustered and a little defensive. After his session, Nick leaves the gym and wakes up in a derelict coat guard ship only to make his way outside to find Gibbs talking to him from the upper deck. Left at the Navy Yard, Nick simply watches everyone around him solve his case. He is only too happy to go home that night and try remember what happened.

On the opposite end of town, Gibbs and Sloane settle into a relaxing night on Gibbs' couch drinking a couple beers.

"Nick talks about Ellie at the gym," Gibbs tells Sloane as the fire burns in his fireplace. Smiling, Sloane asks, "He does? I wonder what he says."

"That she's 'coming along' whatever that means," Gibbs replies as he drinks his beer. A thoughtful expression crosses Sloane's face as she tries to figure out what the words mean.

"You should have seen her face."

"Yeah?" Sloane asks wondering what it looked like. She turns to her boyfriend as he explains that she seemed confused and a little uncertain.

"Well yeah," Sloane answers, "What would 'coming along' even mean? That she's close to him asking her out?"

"Hey," Gibbs starts not wanting a repeat of Tony and Ziva.

"Calm down, Cowboy," Sloane teases as she snuggles up to Gibbs. "It may not mean anything."

"It better not," Gibbs mumbles causing Sloane to chuckle. Thankfully, Gibbs has nothing to worry about when Nick is affronted by what he presumes is Ellie's distrust of him. Telling so to Jack in her evaluation session with him, Nick can see the woman smirk.

"That's exactly something Ellie would do," The agent remarks wondering how much he likes Ellie if he can catch glimpses of her in the psychologist. Locking the bit of information away, Sloane looks back at Nick and asks, "Are you going to do anything about it?"

"What is there to do? She doesn't trust me like I thought."

"Are you sure? Talk to her. Maybe over dinner?"

"I'm not going to dinner with her."

"Okay, well somewhere. Just talk with her. The sooner the better if it will affect your work."

"You've been spending too much time with Gibbs," Nick jokes uneasily knowing in the back of his mind Sloane is right. Leaving his session twenty minutes later, Nick is surprised when he comes down the stairs to see Ellie is still at her desk.

"Hey," She says softly when he comes near her.

"Hey," Nick answers. They are silent a moment until Nick asks, "Do you want to get dinner? We need to talk."

Smiling at him, Ellie answers, "Yeah."

As they eat that night, Nick laughs as he tells Ellie, "I can't believe you called me thirteen times!"

"Well, I really hate paperwork. That, and I really wanted to talk to you alone."

"Confessing your love for me," Nick teases as Ellie rolls her eyes. The serious gaze she gives him next scares him a little. He swallows as Ellie opens her mouth to speak. When nothing comes out, he asks, "B, what's wrong?"

"First, I want to tell you, I trust you, and that is one reason I second guessed you today."

"What's the other reason?" Nick asks confused. Swallowing, Ellie states, "I was let down. A lot."

Nodding, Nick answers, "With Jake."

"And my parents. Um, the other night, I talked with my parents, and it came up that I'm adopted," Ellie states softly. Exhaling a breath he did not know he was holding, Nick remarks, "Woah."

"Yeah, woah," Ellie states. The pair is quiet the rest of dinner. Leaving, Nick puts his arm around Ellie as she complains, "I wish they'd told me! I mean, my brothers joked sometimes, but they were always teasing me."

"Hey," Nick soothes, "It's gonna be okay."

"Yeah, but who am I? I'm not a Bishop anymore," She laments.

"Yeah, you are. Blood doesn't always make a family, B," Nick reassures her just as they reach their cars. As if out of reflex, Nick kisses Ellie on the forehead.

"It'll be okay," He tells her.

 **Review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**So this new season has given me tons to work with, so I'm adding more!**

 **Enjoy!**

"Nick," Ellie starts as they sit in her apartment eating take out, "I think I want to find my parents."

"You sure?" Nick asks putting his fork down. "Didn't you just find out that you were adopted?"

With a sigh, Ellie answers, "Yeah. I just don't know Nick. I want answers!"

"I know, B. I would to, but do your parents even want to talk about it?"

"I haven't talked to them since the told me," The blonde admits. Leaning her head against the back of the sofa, Ellie asks, "Do you think I'll ever find them?"

"Maybe," Nick answers wondering if she ever will.

An hour later, a call from Gibbs calls their night short, and the agents are unfortunately still in the building when Jack arrives that morning. Silently, the woman goes and hands each team member their preferred coffee. With a chorus of tired thank yous, Jack lets a small smirk play on her face before going up to her office. Busying herself with reports and her phone, Jack is surprised to see Ellie come into her office. Looking up, Jack asks how she can help.

With a heavy sigh, the agent nervously sits at a chair before finally speaking.

"Jack, I'm adopted," Ellie states.

Any thought running through Jack's head immediately stops. Schooling her features, Jack asks a follow up question.

"When did you find out?"

"Two weeks ago. My parents just said they were sorry and that the mom was pretty young," Ellie answers. Nodding, Jack wonders the best way to end the session and covertly get Gibbs into her office.

"Have you told anyone else?" Jack asks hoping the woman across from her will not read into her questions too much.

"Just Nick," Ellie answers. "I just want to know why. Why didn't my parents tell me? Who is my real mom and why did she give me up?"

Nodding, Jack answers, "That's something you'll have to ask them, Ellie."

A sigh escapes the younger blonde as she answers, "I know. I just wish I didn't have to."

A small smile forms on Jack's lips before she seriously advises, "If it were my daughter, I'd want her to talk to her parents."

"Thanks, Jack," Ellie answers standing. Copying the agent, Sloane stands and lets her leave the office, but not before asking if Gibbs can come up.

"I may have an idea for this case you're on," She says with a smile. For ten minutes, Jack anxiously waits for Gibbs to come into her office.

"Jack?" Gibbs asks when he enters her office. Somehow managing to stay calm until Gibbs shuts the office door, Sloane blurts out, "She knows. Ellie knows."

"About us?"

Shaking her head, Sloane answers, "No, that she's adopted. Gibbs, I don't know if I can help her."

"Are you allowed to help her?" Gibbs deflects. Rolling her eyes, Sloane stresses, "Gibbs, she knows. I don't know what to do!"

Deciding to reason with his girlfriend, Gibbs asks, "What did you tell her?"

"To talk to her parents. All she knows is her mother was young. Honestly, that may be all they know," Sloane remarks. Wringing her hands, the psychologist begins to pace her office as she tries to make sense of the last half hour of information. Watching her, Gibbs finally asks, "Do you want her to know?"

Turning to face her boyfriend, Sloane, voice cracking, answers, "I don't know."

A knock on the door cuts their conversation short. After a moment, Gibbs calls out that the door is unlocked. When McGee opens the door, Sloane lets out an inaudible sigh of relief. Facing Ellie is not what she wants right now.

"Boss," McGee announces, we got a lead on a suspect. Nodding, Gibbs tells McGee he'll be right behind him before nodding to Jack. She gives a small smile befofre watching her boyfriend leave her office trying to figure out what exactly she is going to do now.

 **Review!**


End file.
